eucatastrophe n. eucatastrophic [ < Gr. eu, "good" and catastrophe Coined by JRR Tolkien.] 1. (in a narrative) The event that shifts the balance in favor of the protagonist when all seems lost. 2. A happy ending.

01/31/2010

LDsaints and LDSoldiers

Saints
and Soldiers
is a war movie that exists in the no-mans land somewhere between Saving Private Ryan and the HBO movie, Silent Night. Produced by Excel, an LDS
(Mormon) production company, it has to be the first war movie I have ever seen
with an LDS soldier as a primary subject. The LDS references are almost
entirely veiled. The main character’s nickname is “Deacon” because he doesn’t
smoke, drink, or swear. He speaks German because of his previous work as a “missionary”
in Berlin. He reads a sacred book all the time (I surmised a Bible but perhaps
a Book of Mormon) and he exudes that sort of “family values” and belief in God
that one would expect of a devout Mormon. But really, on the whole a well
executed movie about war and faith, fighting and forgiveness. What shines
through is that the spiritual connections between the Mormons in the American
and German sides are stronger than the ties of nationalism that bind either of
them to their national causes. This sort
of Mormonism is not a weakling’s religion. It is a religion that makes a person
a better person and even a better soldier while showing the audience how
impossible it might have been had the two sides of various national conflicts
had more Mormons in them. One feels influenced to think well of the religion
without even really knowing that it is being promoted.

A difficult task that the producers have
succeeded marvelously in pulling off.